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If you want to experience wi beers at an outdoor fest gets tics and head to Chilton, WI this May. It sells out. Bring chairs,etc

I remember the days Randy S. used to travel to bars to test his wares; the bars that were mis-serving it got the product yanked. That was when Sprecher was not pasteurized and could only be bought in the large clamp-top returnable bottle. Now we are a throw away culture that is heading to financial disaster. $10 for IPA six pack? Well, I mostly drink the Spainish, Portugese, Itanian, Chilian Reds from Trader Joe's they sell in the $5-$7 range; they are outstanding for the price. .

I worked in Milwaukee for 24 years and transferred to Madison the past 4. Though I think they are a bunch of pompous sob's, the Madison region has much better microbrews than Milwaukee. And JTBA, you are right, this article could have been written four years ago.

New Glarus and Furthermore are like 50 miles from Madison. Tyranena (Lake Mills) is equally far from Milwaukee as Madison. I have lived in both Milwaukee and Madison, and I believe Madison does not have any better micros that Milwaukee. I would argue that the Milwaukee beer bars named in the above article, like Sugar Maple and Palm, are head and shoulders better beer bars than anything I have found in Madison.

Stupids, from the center of Madison, New Glarus is 28.2 miles. Furthermore is 38, Tyranea is 28. Even closer if you would count the city limits. James Thurber mentioned the region and I responded as such. While the beer bars in Milwaukee are indeed better, Thurber was talking about micro brews. Madison wins that contest. BTW, I live in Milwaukee.

The difference between Madison and Milwaukee craft beers isn't the distance from the microbrews it's the great selection at most of the bars and restaurants. The people running the bars seem to be into them as well and know a lot about them.

Have a good brew at home. Buy a four-pack of Sprecher Black Bavarian brewed in Glendale. This is a flavorful, heavy brew smacking of chocolate and slight sweetness, holding an inch thick tan-colored head right to the bottom of the glass. I stay out of bars to save myself and others from the effects of driving under the influence.

I have taken in many pints in both Madison and Milwaukee. They are both very crafty beer towns. However, the tie-breaker goes to Madison (in my opinion) because there are still a lot of tap lines in MKE for the local Mega Brewer. Madison jumped ship on that loyalty a long time ago.

JTBA, Wow, your living in the present, what's it like? One snipe deserves another you know. Another post mentions Alpha King, my IPA favorite! If you like Flemish sours, Duchesse De Bourgogne is really fine.

If you're talking Madison proper, Ale Asylum is the only good brewery. I don't think you can give Madison credit for Tyranena, and certainly not New Glarus or Furthermore. Capital Brewery's regular offerings are just boring, imo, although they do have some tasty seasonal/specialty offerings (their bocks are all great.) Another thing to consider when judging Milwaukee's craft brewers are the significant amount of brew pubs that only sell on site (Stonefly, Water Street, etc.)